Gel shoe insoles

My motivation for ordering some gel insoles has as much to do with curiosity as it does with practicality.

I do have some “walking style” boots that seemingly have no insole padding and which make walking more than ½ mile a major exercise in discomfort. So that is my “claimed” reason for buying these products.

The insoles that I selected are full insoles and they are sold in two sizes. One for men and the other for women!!! You apparently cut them down to size when they arrive. That should prove interesting.

The insoles that I have chosen have no direct corrective or medical purpose, but they are intended to reduce shock and impact during walking. In other words they are for comfort only. The gel construction means that they should also have a “cool” property making them comfortable and soothing and not hot and uncomfortable. That remains to be seen - or felt.

The price for these orthotic shoe insoles was a massive £11 including delivery, so my expectations are not exactly high. However, many cheap products are good, so I will suspend my reluctance to believe the product’s claims until I have tried them out.

It should be pointed out that you do need to have sufficient room, i.e. depth, within a shoe in order to accommodate these orthotic insoles, so they will not go into tight fitting shoes unless an existing insole can be removed.

From an orthopedic perspective, what these orthotics are suppose to do is help all aspects of the body by removing the impact stress that runs through the bones of the legs and then into the spine during walking.
For those with back problems this kind of insole can have positive effects and for those with fallen arches or pronation, an orthotic insert can correct foot and leg alignment and making walking much easier.

Once I have got these insoles and been able to run them in and get some idea of how good (or otherwise) they are I will come back with some feedback on their performance.